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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. cold — an illness
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. squash — the sport
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. present — there
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. present — a gift
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. present — the time now
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. rash — a series
  18. lie — to recline
  19. rash — hasty
  20. squash — to crush
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com